


Pack Mentality

by TuppingLiberty



Series: Tupping Liberty's prompt ficlet series [6]
Category: Jurassic World (2015), Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: BB-8 is a raptor, Jurassic World AU, M/M, a kickass raptor at that, mentions of Afghanistan war
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-25
Updated: 2016-07-25
Packaged: 2018-07-26 18:10:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7584670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TuppingLiberty/pseuds/TuppingLiberty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Jurassic World AU one person - specifically Meekobits - asked for, and everyone wants.  You might not know you want it, but you do.</p><p>Finn is Mr. Masrani's personal admin after leaving his life as a (mostly) white-hat hacker. Poe and Rey are animal trainers. When Finn discovers government contracts for weaponized dinosaurs, the shit hits the fan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Meekobits](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meekobits/gifts), [zabzab](https://archiveofourown.org/users/zabzab/gifts).



> Besides getting the setting and character ideas from Meekobits, this fic also features a prompt from Zabzab - "Have you tried turning it off and on?"

Finn paused, hands on the wheel of his SUV, as he let himself drink in the sight before him: Poe was on the ground, crouching in front of his motorcycle with some tool in his hand, grease dotting his white tank and - Finn gulped - also smeared over those perfect shoulders. Finn was pretty sure he could lose himself in those ridiculous lashes and chocolate brown eyes that were -  _ shit _ \- looking straight through the windshield at him. Finn jolted, then fumbled for the door handle, counted to ten, and let himself out into the humid jungle air. Poe was approaching him now, those lanky legs clad in tight jeans that made Finn’s mind jump straight into sin mode. He bit the inside of his cheek and tamped down on the attraction. It didn’t matter how  _ attractive _ Poe was - Finn was management and that type of relationship was all kinds of wrong, plus Finn had met Poe’s type before. The rough and tumble, ridiculously sexy, will fuck anything that moves type. Okay, maybe he didn’t have verification on that last part but the man had swagger for days so it was hard to imagine Poe not being able to get whatever he wanted whenever he wanted. Besides, relationships were complicated.  _ Easier to go it alone, right? _

All of these emotions riling up inside him made him testy, so when Poe offered an easy smile and a greeting, Finn’s face remained stony. “Mr. Masrani has arrived, and is ready to view a demonstration of your raptor show.”

Poe immediately rolled his eyes. “Buddy, what I do with the raptors isn’t a ‘show’. I’m a trainer.”

Finn resisted the urge to roll his eyes back. “My sincerest apologies,” he went with instead, dripping with sarcasm. “Mr. Masrani would like to view your training show.” He smirked internally at the flash of annoyance in Poe’s eyes, then regretted it when Poe stepped deliberately into his personal space.

“Someday, I’m going to figure out exactly what your problem is, Finn.” 

Finn held his ground. “I know what you’re doing right now, and it won’t work on me. Stop with the alpha male tactics. I am not one of your lions or bears or velociraptors.”

Poe’s eyes widened. “So you read my research briefing? Buddy, I didn’t know you cared,” Poe finished dryly.

“It’s my business to care, so that I can interpret everything for Mr. Masrani and the InGen board of directors so  _ they _ know what to care about.”

“And what have you told them about me?” Poe’s grin was cheeky.

“Well, I had to report your brood turning on one another, resulting in an almost total loss. Thank God specimen BB-8 survived so we can salvage something out of this.”

This time, hurt crossed Poe’s face, and he muttered, “Right. I always forget how they’re just numbers to you.” He turned away to walk up the steps to his trailer, pulling off his tank and wiping away some of the grease with it. He turned back to face Finn. “So, do you have to fetch me personally, or do I have time to clean up and meet you guys at the training ground?”

Finn was already thinking of the myriad of other things he could do with his time than wait around while Poe got naked- while Poe took a shower, so he turned back to his car and called out a time to meet. He allowed himself one last glance at the bare back of Poe’s retreating figure before driving away.

\----------------------

Poe knew how to think like an animal. That didn’t mean he liked to behave like one, and when Finn had called him out on his alpha behavior earlier, he’d been annoyed at himself. But the man had just stepped out of his car in his stupidly handsome white linen pants and shirt - who wore white in the jungle? - looking fresh and light and extremely out of place at Poe’s trailer. There was something about Finn that made Poe want to roar and chase and claim. And when Finn just turned his nose up at it and refused to be intimidated, it only heated Poe’s blood further. Fuck, the man drove him crazy, and not in the way that (what Poe was sure would be) an extremely mind blowing one-night stand would cure. Finn just wasn’t that kind of guy, and Poe hadn’t been that for a long time. Since before the war. Something about how Finn kept himself aloof from everyone tugged deep at Poe’s emotions.

The fire in Poe’s blood lit as he pulled his jeep up to the raptor compound and saw the man in question talking quietly with Poe’s current employer, Mr. Masrani. Jurassic World was shut down for the weekend, only the minimal amount of staff needed on site to keep all systems running, so that Mr. Masrani could inspect everything and make decisions for the coming year’s budget.  _ Time to sing for supper _ , he thought, and put his game face on. “Mr. Masrani, I’m glad you could come out to see what we’ve done here.” Poe offered a hand, and Masrani took it and shook heartily.

“Poe Dameron! So good to see you. I’m sorry I’ve not been very hands on, but I have good eyes and ears here on the ground that keep me informed.” He winked at Finn, who nodded politely, leaving Poe to wonder exactly  _ what _ Finn had been saying about him. Masrani put his other hand on their joined ones, stilling the shake and looking into Poe’s eyes. “I was so sorry to hear about the loss of the brood.”

“It was unfortunate, but that happens sometimes. InGen informs me that they’ll have another brood ready to go in a month for me to try again, but for now, Blue is taking very well to the training. She’s a prime example of what I can do.” He gestured to the compound, inviting them to walk with him.

“Blue is specimen BB-8?” Finn asked, in a manner that Poe recognized. Finn knew the answer, he was just asking so Mr. Masrani wouldn’t have to. 

“Yeah, we just call her Blue around here,” said the small woman on the elevated walkway overlooking the raptor habitat. She had a rifle slung over her shoulder.

“My right-hand woman, Rey. Rey, Mr. Masrani. She and I were in the military together.” 

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” Masrani said jovially as they shook hands. Finn smiled at her, and not for the first time did Poe wonder why Finn was so happy to be nice to Rey and not him. He  _ never _ got invited to their movie nights up at HQ. 

The group watched as the young velociraptor walked through the simulated jungle below. The pebbled texture of her brown skin could be seen from this distance, but what made Blue truly remarkable was the bright orange stripes running down her side. “May I ask why you call her Blue?” Masrani inquired politely.

“If you get close enough to find out, you're probably about three seconds away from death,” Rey answered with a grin.

Flatly, Finn said, “Her eyes. They're blue.”

Mr. Masrani laughed and clapped his hand on Finn’s back, and Poe couldn't help but notice that Finn looked distinctly uncomfortable with the gesture. “Finn, Finn, Finn. Always straight to the point. Sometimes life can be more interesting than that, hmm?”

Poe decided to take the attention off of Finn. “Has Blue done her morning hunt yet?” Poe asked, pulling his training clicker out of his pocket.

“Nope. I’ll go get everything ready,” Rey replied.

Poe’s heart swelled with pride as he ran Blue through her maneuvers and she passed every one with flying colors. When he finally allowed her to catch the squealing pig as her prize, she pounced, slashing it with her claws, and he noticed that Masrani watched without flinching but Finn turned away. 

“That is very impressive, Poe. Very impressive. Imagine what a whole pack could do.” He held out his hand again. “Keep up the good work, son. I know Finn here will keep me apprised.” Masrani turned to Finn, murmuring in his ear, and Finn was already pulling out his phone to take notes as they walked away.

Rey approached him from behind and clapped a hand around his back as they watched the retreating figures. “Good work, Commander.”

Poe scoffed. “What’s it going to take to get you to stop calling me that?”

“Oh, I’ll never stop. I am kind of sad, though.”

Poe raised his brow. “Oh?”

“Yeah, I’m sad because I’ve realized I’m never going to get under your skin as much as Finn does. It’s the end of an era.” She sighed dramatically.

He rolled his eyes and deliberately turned away from her when she doubled over in laughter.


	2. Chapter 2

Darkness had fallen some time before, and Finn yawned blearily at the computer, going over the data for his annual presentation to Mr. Masrani and the board tomorrow one last time before closing the file out. 

Now that it was done, he could lie back and relax, and definitely  _ not _ think about Poe’s half-naked body.  _ No. Nope. Not happening. _ He forced his mind away from that and his thoughts automatically wandered back to the odd conversation he’d had with Mr. Masrani after the raptor demonstration earlier that day. Finn had discovered a sudden, large part of the budget that he couldn’t account for. Luckily, it was money coming into the park, not going out, but it wasn’t a boost in ticket sales or merchandising or even sponsorships. He’d run across it in the numbers a few days before but had wanted to make sure he absolutely didn’t know where it was coming from before he alerted Mr. Masrani. He’d verbally presented the case to Mr. Masrani on their ride back to HQ, and he’d been taken aback when Mr. Masrani had shut him down with a ‘Don’t worry about it.’ Finn knew who paid the bills. As Mr. Masrani pulled out his phone to start a series of rapid fire texts, he shut up and concentrated on his own job. But now, in the quiet of the evening... 

“Don’t worry about it? That’s it?” he muttered into his empty suite, frustrated. He knew InGen had secrets, Mr. Masrani had secrets. Secrets were the prerogative of billionaires and global science companies alike. Their bread and butter was made on secrets. But secrets went against his very nature, every time Finn came up against one of them that rubbed him the wrong way, it frustrated the hell out of him. Finn was just not the type of person who liked secrets, he'd discovered a long time ago. He held his fingers over his keyboard and then paused - did he really want to do this? He chewed his lip, then began typing away.  _ As long as I don't alert anyone to my presence on the mainframe, I'll be fine, right? This isn't disloyalty, necessarily... _ Most of the people on this island thought Finn was just a fancy admin. Only Mr. Masrani knew Finn’s background as a (mostly) white-hat hacker.  _ Well, no one has ever been able to pin anything other than white-hat on me,  _ Finn thought with a grin.

He settled into his deep search, having to stop several times to work his way around the walls and red flags that he himself had advised the company put in. In the end, though, he found it. The walls came tumbling down for him like they always did, and soon Finn was staring at rather large transfers to Jurassic World from the militaries of several foreign powers, including the US. Defense contracts? What kind of weaponized use would the genetic research InGen had done have for the military? Finn thought back to the gamut of tricks Poe had run Blue through earlier. Surely not- not-  _ weaponized _ dinosaurs? _Are they_ fucking _insane?_

Finn backed himself out of the system carefully, then logged back into his regular access and clicked on the cameras for the raptor compound out of curiosity. All was quiet there. He flicked over to Poe’s trailer without thinking about why he was doing it and saw a grainy image of Poe, sitting on his lawn, nursing something - knowing him, probably a Coke, he didn’t really like to drink alcohol, which was a weird contradiction in Finn’s head - and staring out at the lagoon. Finn admonished himself over the strange relief he felt and clicked back over to the raptor compound one last time, and that’s when he caught it. The small bush near the compound entrance that was blowing in the breeze in the exact same pattern, over and over, as if-

“Someone looped the feed.” 

He grabbed his keys and flew out of the suite.

\------------------------

Poe finished his Coke, letting his eyes drift shut as he listened to the sound of the park at night. The thing he liked about Isla Nublar was that it was big enough that he could pretend he was really out in the wild, and not in a self-contained zoo. He didn’t feel hemmed in here, most of the time. In fact, he really only felt hemmed in when a certain someone was nearby, and that was mostly because he had to keep all his feelings contained within himself.

As if he’d summoned him, Poe turned to watch Finn’s SUV drive down his road - fast. His brow furrowed and he stood, crossing his arms when Finn screeched to a halt and practically jumped out of the door.

“I need your computer,” Finn said without preamble. 

“You-what? What are you doing here?” Poe’s eyebrows raised as Finn slid past him, heading for his trailer.

“I tried to call, but the cell network is down. Intentionally, I think.” Finn hurried inside, Poe hot on his heels.

“Uh, pardon the chaos, it’s the maid’s year off,” Poe said automatically as he pulled his phone out of his pocket to see that Finn was right, as usual.

Finn paused, apparently at a loss at the clutter of Poe’s trailer. He looked at Poe, amusement mixing with the panic in his eyes. Poe held his hands up in his defense. “Okay, so I know I’m a mess but is that really what you want to focus on right now,” he said with an arched brow. He dug under some papers and came up with an ancient beat up field laptop and offered it to Finn, laughing at the disgust on his face. Finn opened it and tapped quickly, and just as quickly shut it.

“Yeah, the whole network’s down. They better not have cut the whole fucking thing like that idiot back in the JP ‘93 incident. Come on, we need to go.” Finn turned back to the door, but Poe had had enough of this shit and grabbed his arm.

“What the hell is going on?”

“Someone looped the feed for the raptor compound. I have no idea what’s going on, but I doubt it's good news.”

Poe’s fingers involuntarily squeezed into Finn’s arm before he released him and snatched Finn’s  keys from his hand, double timing out of the house. “Next time you think my raptor is in trouble you fucking  _ lead _ with ‘Poe I think your raptor is in trouble,’ got it?” On the way to the car, he picked up a large metal box and threw it in the back seat, then waited only for Finn to close his door before peeling out.

“What’s in the box?”

“Weapons. Just in case. Tell me what you know.”

“Earlier tonight I found information that InGen has defense contracts with the militaries of several countries. And then I discovered the looping video and came for you. Because, of everything here, what makes the most sense for military use?”

“Trained dinosaurs,” Poe muttered into the darkness. He hit the heel of his hand against the wheel. “It doesn’t fucking work like that! Have they learned nothing from history? Trained attack animals work on a what, individual scale? Could I train a raptor to guard a king? Or the president? Sure. But military uses? You can’t just expect a pack of raptors to take out terrorist cells. Not without way more loss of life than you want anyone to know about.” He heard Finn release a shaky breath. “What?”

“Until that rant, I wasn’t sure exactly what you knew about this.”

Poe glanced over at him. “But you came to me anyway. Why?”

“Because I know how much you love that damn dinosaur. Keep your eyes on the road,” Finn said tensely, and Poe rolled his eyes, but followed the instruction dutifully.

As they approached the compound, they saw floodlights, and Poe decided it would be best to park the car in the bush and walk in. Once he’d stopped, he opened the metal box. “Do you know how to shoot?” Finn nodded. “Well, that’s both a surprise and a relief,” he replied, then grinned when Finn glared at him. He tossed him a gun and a few clips. “Tranqs are blue, live ammo red, okay? We don’t know what kind of situation we’re getting ourselves into here.” He loaded himself up with several guns, leaving behind what he knew would slow down his movements too much. He nodded at Finn, who nodded back, and they started to creep through the forest.

Before long, they came across a sentry, and Poe wrapped an arm around Finn to press him back into a tree. He’d like to get farther before sending up any alarms, and for a few tense minutes, they waited for the sentry to pass, his footsteps fading into the sounds of the jungle. Nodding at Finn, he started again, trying not to notice how in tune Finn was with his movements, how right Finn felt by his side. He had kind of figured Finn was going to be an anchor on him, but now he was beginning to think he might actually be an asset.

They only had to wait out one other sentry before coming to the edge of the jungle that opened to the raptor compound clearing. Flood lights illuminated the movements of a dozen or so heavily armed people as they bustled around the compound, preparing a large containment cage. By the entrance to the raptor living area, Finn saw a body crumpled on the ground.

“Rey,” Finn whispered in his ear, distress evident in his voice.

“I think she’s breathing,” Poe whispered back. “Look, you can see her chest move.” He heard Finn’s sigh of relief beside him.

“Do you see any markings? Who are these guys?” 

Poe nodded at the closest white-coated tech, at the InGen logo embroidered neatly above his heart.

“But why?”

“I don’t know. But my guess? You scared them with your talk with Masrani.” 

Finn was quiet, looking out at the clearing. “Poe, we don’t have enough firepower. There’s no way we can stop them from taking BB- Blue.”

“I know. But how are they going to transfer her? Has to be by boat, right? That container is too heavy a load for a helicopter. So we follow the transport party to the docks, and-”

Poe was interrupted by shouting. They were attaching the containment cage to the raptor area, but something was going wrong. The cage shook, shoving away from the wall like something was pushing at it from the inside, and suddenly Poe could see through the holes in the sides that Blue was throwing herself at the end of the container to create an opening. His eyes widened and he shoved Finn behind him, hoping to God his scent would be enough to keep Blue from attacking them. In another second she was free. Across the clearing, Poe could see that even though her mouth was muzzled, her eyes were wild with fear, and there’d be no use going for the clicker in his pocket now. Poe flinched as they watched Blue take down her nearest captor. She didn’t need her teeth to kill anyone, not with both sets of claws free, but InGen had obviously not thought that through.

“She looks scared,” Finn whispered as they watched her slash the belly of another victim.

“She’s terrified.”

Around them, everything was chaos as men jumped into vehicles. Poe reasoned they were under orders to keep Blue alive no matter what the cost, because they weren’t shooting at her.

Poe was so focused on the scene in front of him that he missed the footsteps behind him until the sentry was right on top of them. “Hands up, turn around slowly,” he said gruffly, and Finn and Poe complied. Things were quieting behind him, quieting throughout the jungle, and Poe was pretty sure he was the only one who noticed as Finn tried valiantly to reason with the guard. She was here, around them somewhere. He could sense her.

“I don’t care who you are, you’re coming with-” The attack came from the side, Blue ripping into the man’s chest. As he fell, the sentry’s finger twitched on the trigger, and bullets sprayed through the jungle. Blue silenced him with a claw to his throat, spared a quick glance at Poe, and ran into the jungle away from him.

“We can get her back, I think. She just needs some time to calm down. But-” Poe finally glanced at Finn, and realized the man had fallen to the ground at some point. “Finn, what-”

“Leg,” Finn said between gritted teeth, and Poe knelt, preparing to examine the white linen-clad leg that was already soaking through with blood. He shoved the pant leg up to expose Finn’s calf as Finn hissed and scrabbled for purchase on the ground.

“Gunshot wounds,” Poe said, trying to keep his voice calm. “Just two. They went straight through, too, so that’s good news. Through the flesh, so no broken bones. All in all, it could be worse.” 

“It could be worse? It hurts like a motherfucker, Poe,” Finn groaned, then gasped when Poe ripped away the bottom half of his pant leg. “Jesus, do you know how much this cost?”

Poe laughed. “Really?” He wrapped the material around the wound as tightly as he could. 

Finn whimpered, and the sound speared through Poe’s heart. Then Finn sighed, and conceded, “No, not really. Sometimes I don’t react well to…”

“To getting shot? I think that’s pretty normal, Finn. This bandage will only work temporarily. If we can get you across the clearing, I can get supplies to bind you up better. And we can see if Rey survived Blue’s escape. Can you walk?” Poe helped him to his feet, then grabbed the sentry’s radio. To Finn’s credit, though he winced, with Poe’s arm around his waist he was able to limp out of the jungle.

“What’s the plan?” Finn asked. “Distract me.”

“Well, after cleaning you up and rescuing Rey, we need to grab the tracker. Although this is all going to have to happen very quickly because I imagine InGen will think of the tracker right away, too, and head back here soon, if they’re not already.”

The radio crackled. “That’s a negative on Target Finn. Target was not in his suite and is at large. I repeat, Target Finn is at large.”

In the silence that followed, Finn said, “Yeah, it’s looking more and more like I should have just kept my mouth shut.”

“You did the right thing?” Poe offered, and Finn laughed, like Poe had hoped he would.

Rey was stirring, and thankfully, not slashed by Blue, when they approached her. She worked herself to a sitting position woozily. “What’s the situation, Commander?”

“We need the tracker for Blue. Grab it, your rifle, and meet us in the supply room. I need to perform some field med on Finn here.”

“Roger.” She pushed herself up, swaying a bit. “Shit, whatever those fuckers hit me with was strong.” 

“Can you do it?” Poe asked, glancing worriedly back at the empty-for-now road.

“Yeah,” she said with a shake of her head. “Yeah I can do it.” She ran a hand along the wall of the compound for support as she made her way to her quarters. 

Poe watched her for thirty more seconds before he started moving Finn in the opposite direction. In the supply room, he helped Finn sit on the table and extend the leg, carefully unwrapping the makeshift bandage. The bleeding was already slowing to a crawl, but Poe had to clean it. Finn hissed but otherwise remained silent as Poe gently swabbed it with a clean wet towel. 

“I think they tore some muscle,” Poe murmured. “Are you a runner? This looks like the calf of a runner.”

“Uh, yeah, I’m a runner. Treadmill. I try to get in five miles a day.”

Poe tried to block the image of Finn in running gear, his easy, steady gait on the treadmill, his calves pumping, his thighs burning, his ass- Finn sucked in a breath, and Poe realized he’d been getting a little rough with the wound. “Sorry. You might have to rehab it, with the muscle damage. You need a doctor. Sorry I’m all you get right now.” Wounds clean, he sprinkled some coagulant over the holes and began to wrap the wound in gauze. 

“Poe, it’s okay.” Finn’s voice was soft, strained.

“I could give you some pain meds, but…”

“But I’m more useful if I’m lucid. It’s okay,” he repeated, placing his hand on Poe’s shoulder. Poe met his eyes, and suddenly was at a loss for words.

The sudden burst of shouting broke them from their revery. “Rey,” Poe cried softly as Finn swung his leg off the table. “Is your gun loaded?”

“Yeah. Tranqs for now. I mean, I guess I could go in, eye for an eye, or leg for a leg, but-”

“No, I get it. Tranqs for me, too.”

They crept out of the compound, Finn no longer needing support from Poe even though his limp was still pronounced. Poe tried not to imagine what kind of permanent damage he was doing to it by walking on it right now.

Poe paused at the corner of the compound, peering around to see Rey holding her hands up, about 10 guards pointing their weapons at her. 

“Poe and Finn took off ten minutes ago. I’m alone.” Rey’s voice carried through the distance. “Go ahead and check my quarters, I dare you.” One of her hands twitched briefly, but it was long enough for Poe to catch the signal.

Poe nodded, even though he knew Rey couldn’t see him. “Okay, this is the part where we hide.” Poe led him to door, and quickly typed in a number sequence to unlock it, leading Finn into the simulated jungle of the raptor environment. He pulled them into the bushes and helped Finn into a crouch. They waited tensely until they heard the sound of the car driving away. 

“We’re bringing Target Rey back to camp. Targets Poe and Finn still at large,” the radio crackled between them.

“Shit,” Finn said under his breath.

“Right, so, what’s the list now? Track Blue, bring her in, rescue Rey, and get you to a doctor.”

“Right. Sounds easy.” Finn winced as he stood, then leaned against the wall. “Agh. Yeah. Easy. No,” he said as he pushed away Poe’s arm. “I’m okay. Just the blood rushing into my legs. Better now. Mostly.” He limped along the wall, working into a stride by time they reached the door. “How are we going to track Blue without the tracker?”

“I know where it’s at. Rey gave me an old hand signal.” Poe led them to Rey’s quarters, where Finn propped himself on the door while Poe crossed the room and moved a rug, revealing a hidden cubby.

“Somehow I don’t think this room came with that.”

“Rey and I like to make...modifications that suit us. This is one.” He grinned as he entered the combo and opened the lock, then stole a glance at Finn and his heart stuttered. A small half-smile had transformed Finn’s face. 

“You and Rey met in the military.” It wasn’t a question, but it jolted Poe to action. He opened the cubby and found the tracker.

“Yeah, she was in my squadron.” He shook the tracker in his hand, trying to get the display to show anything. “Fuck. It’s not working.”

“Have you tried turning it off and on again?” There was that half-smile once more.

“It’s not- that’s not- oh.” Poe grumbled as Finn laughed outright when the tracker booted successfully. “She’s in the upper east quadrant, near the fence for the gyrosphere paddock.” 

“Poe.”

Poe looked up at Finn’s serious tone. “Yeah?”

“If we take a vehicle, they’ll find us quickly on the cams. We’re going to have to walk.” Finn gulped, but looked determined.

Poe was already shaking his head. “No, Finn, you can’t walk on that injury. That’s crazy, buddy.”

“And you can’t do this alone. I know I’m not as good as having Rey along, but I know how to shoot. And you know how to survive in the wild. And you need someone to have your back.”

“Finn-”

Finn was already limping away and to the east.


	3. Chapter 3

Each step was agony, but at least it was keeping Finn awake. With every step, Finn cursed the average running speed of a velociraptor. _How the fuck did she get so far so fast?_ He suddenly stumbled in a hole and couldn’t hold himself up, tumbling to the ground as he cursed.

“Finn!” Poe was immediately by his side, arms under his, hauling him to his feet. Finn tried to push him away but Poe was stronger, of course.

“I don’t appreciate being manhandled,” Finn grumbled, mostly because Poe was an easy target when he was in pain.

“It’s not manhandling, I’m _helping_ you. I know you like to be independent, but Jesus, Finn.” Poe grunted as he took most of Finn’s weight on himself, aiding Finn in his walking. “We need to find a place to rest.”

Finn bit back another snide remark. “That would be nice,” he said instead. They hobbled to where a grove of trees made a small shelter.

“Well, it’s not a suite up at HQ, but…” Poe helped Finn lay down, then found some brush to stack up under his leg to elevate it.

“It’s not a trailer by the lagoon, either,” Finn joked, grimacing as he adjusted his leg, then shivered a little in the cold night air.

“Yeah, I’d imagine even my little bunk would be appealing right about now.” He shrugged out of his jacket. “Here, take this, I’m warm blooded.” Finn didn’t protest as Poe helped him into it, and he was overwhelmed by the woodsy smell he associated with Poe.

Poe pulled a granola bar out of his pack and handed it to Finn, then laid down by Finn and bit into his own bar. “We can rest for a few hours, then get started again near dawn.”

Finn nodded, and they finished their food in companionable silence. Finn felt himself drifting off when he noticed Poe fidgeting. “What is going on over there?”

“Can’t get comfortable.”

Finn laughed, a big belly laugh that had Poe’s eyebrows drawing together. “Poe Dameron, seasoned war vet, animal trainer across six continents, is having a hard time finding a comfortable position on the jungle floor.” At Poe’s cross frown, Finn reached out and tapped him lightly on the shoulder, then patted his own chest. “I’ve been told I make a great pillow.”

 _That_ made Poe smile at least, and he scooted closer. “Who told you that?” He rested his head on Finn’s shoulder.

“My nieces.” Finn felt Poe’s chuckle on his side.

“I bet they’re experts, too.”

“Oh yeah, they are. Those little buggers will fall asleep pretty much anywhere.” Finn found himself fascinated by the crown of Poe’s head, and the tangled curls that lay there as they lapsed into silence. Finn knew he should rest, but- “What are you thinking about?” he said into the heavy jungle air.

“Blue being alone out there.”

“She’s a velociraptor, don’t you think she can defend herself?”

“She can, but…” When Poe trailed off, Finn stopped fighting himself and began to card his fingers through Poe’s curls to untangle them gently. Poe nuzzled his nose into Finn’s chest. “But velociraptors are pack animals, and she lost her pack a long time ago. I’m it. I’m all she has left, and now she’s scared, and alone, and in an alien environment.”

Finn continued to scratch at Poe’s scalp and work the kinks of the curls out. “We’re going to find her, okay, Poe? I promise.”

“Who’s your pack, Finn?”

Finn’s fingers paused. “No one, I guess. I’m a loner.”

“I learned awhile ago that loners don’t last long out here in the wild. You need someone to have your back,” Poe murmured, echoing Finn’s words from earlier.

“Maybe I found someone already,” Finn whispered back.

The last thing Finn remembered was the feel of the silk of Poe’s hair beneath his fingers.

When he woke, he was staring right into one of Blue's stark blue eyes, her claws gleaming in the morning light. She snarled through her muzzle, claws raising and extending as she prepared to eviscerate Finn.

“Blue,” Poe’s authoritative voice rang through their small section of jungle, and Blue snapped her head to the left, but didn’t lower her claws. Poe had obviously gotten up to take care of business as his pants were still unbuttoned. Blue glanced back and forth between Poe and Finn.

“Poe…” Finn managed under his breath.

“She’s confused. You’re covered in my scent, wearing my jacket, but you’re not me. But I’m just going to keep talking in a calm, cool voice, to remind her that I’m here, and alive and well. And I’m going to reach into my pocket and grab the clicker, and she’s going to obey my commands because I’m the alpha.” Poe was steady as he clicked the command for Blue to stand down, and she blinked at him, then backed away from Finn. Poe crossed to Finn and helped him up, then took his hand and stretched it out toward Blue’s muzzled mouth. “Friend,” Poe said, clicking a command at the same time, and Finn watched Blue’s nostrils flare then snort as she took in his scent then analyzed it. “Pack.” Finn looked sharply at Poe and found he was watching him, even as he clicked another command for Blue, and Blue stepped back farther.

“Pack?” Finn asked.

“Yeah,” Poe responded as he interlocked his fingers with Finn’s.

Finn squeezed their hands together as he began to limp along. “Okay.”

\-----------------------------

After removing her muzzle, Poe gave Blue the signal for free rein, and she darted off into the bushes. She’d pop back in to check on Poe’s location intermittently, but for now she was happy and safe and ready to follow them back to the raptor compound.

“What’s the plan?” Finn asked, and Poe’s heart broke a little at how strained his voice sounded.

“Find their camp, rescue Rey, and figure out how to make InGen and Mr. Masrani pay for this. And get you to a doctor.” He brought up their hands to brush a kiss across Finn’s knuckles before he even thought the action through. Finn didn’t react one way or another, except to keep his grip on Poe tight.

“Who can we tell? It’s not like Costa Rican authorities will be willing to take on the US government,” Finn said.

“We can’t just let them get away with it. There’s nothing to guarantee that when we get out of here, they won’t keep coming after us until they shut us up.”

“Well, they shut us up pretty well by shutting the network down,” Finn grumbled, then paused. “The network. If I can get it up and running, I can leak the data I hacked out onto some sites, and it’d be duplicated a million times within the hour. There’s no way they could cover that up.”

Finn’s voice had filled with an excitement Poe wasn’t sure he’d ever heard before, and, fully aware of what he was doing this time but not really caring, he swept Finn into his arms and slid his mouth over his. Finn made a low sound and opened up for him, and Poe growled. His tongue swept inside to take possession, and Finn’s slid by to do the same. _Challenge._ Poe brought his hand up to press at the base of Finn’s head, drawing him closer, as close as they could get, for now, both claiming each other with the slide of lips and the soft noises breaking from their throats. Poe broke off, panting. “Sorry, you’re really fucking cute when you talk computers.”

“You’re not too bad yourself,” Finn said, sounding breathless, and they both laughed, astonished.

There was a rustling nearby and Blue poked her head through a bush, then tilted it to the side as she took in the scene of Finn wrapped in Poe’s arms, their mouths inches apart. She chirped low, and turned away.

“Why do I feel like I just got judged by your daughter?”

“Packmate. She’s my packmate. And now she’s yours, too.”

“Right.”

“She’s got your back.”

“Right.” But this time Finn grinned, and began to limp along again.

\-----------------------

Finn was getting used to watching the raptor run around them, but whenever she turned that blue-eyed gaze back to them, his heartbeat picked up a bit. He wasn’t entirely sure it had been the best idea to unmuzzle the dinosaur. What was it Rey had said? If you can see the blue of her eyes, you're probably three seconds away from death? As they drew near the compound, she returned once more, growling, and Finn stopped in his tracks and released Poe’s hand to raise his own in defense.

“It’s okay, Finn,” Poe said, even as he moved to step in front of Finn in a way that Finn found both endearing and annoying.

Blue tossed her head and growled again.

“I think there’s someone at the compound she doesn’t like.” Poe lifted his gun up, and Finn did the same. He clicked a command, and Blue fell into step beside him, which was the weirdest fucking thing Finn had ever experienced, he was pretty sure, and Finn worked in a fucking live-dinosaur theme park for Christ’s sake. He swallowed nervously but kept a steady limping pace behind Poe.

In the clearing ahead, they saw a lone guard. Poe whispered his plan to Finn, and Finn nodded and gulped. He limped into the clearing, gun drawn. The sentry pulled up his own weapon and drew out his radio. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Finn called across the distance, stopping a good ten feet away from the man.

The man scoffed as he continued to raise his radio to his mouth. “And why is that?”

“Because I’m not alone,” Finn said, proud of the strength of his voice.

They both turned to watch Blue stalk out of the jungle, head low in hunting position. The guard’s hand quavered and he dropped the radio, distracted enough for Poe to creep in behind him and disarm him, sliding his arms around him in a choke hold.

“Tell us where your camp is, or Blue here gets an early breakfast,” Poe growled in the man’s ear, and Blue continued her approach.

“Lower east quadrant. Please, God. Stop her. By the gardens. I swear to God, I’m telling the truth.”

Blue reared back, claws raised, preparing to pounce, then straightened at a short whistle from Poe. She shook her head in annoyance.

Poe shoved the man on the ground. “Watch him.” He clicked and Blue followed him, tail flicking dangerously. They rounded a corner out of Finn’s sight, and he held his gun nervously on the crying collapsed man before him. They both jumped when they heard the squeal of a pig cut short. Poe reappeared. “Can’t just tempt Blue like that without rewarding her for good behavior,” he explained to Finn before hauling the guard back up. “Let’s lock this guy up and get to Rey.”


	4. Chapter 4

Now that they had Blue, they risked the sound and speed of one of the quads they kept at the raptor compound. Finn climbed on behind Poe, then huffed when Poe took his arms and wrapped them tightly around his waist. Poe grinned back at him. “Don’t enjoy this too much,” he teased, and Finn rolled his eyes, trying to ignore how his body was plastered against Poe’s.

Blue bobbed along beside them, looking like she was having the time of her life. Maybe she was, Finn thought. This certainly was the biggest area she’d ever had access to. It seemed kind of cruel, now that he thought about it, to force her into such a small area. 

They parked the quad when they thought they were close to the camp and walked the rest of the way, having to tranq a few sentries as they went in. The clearing held a small cluster of tents, and Finn could hear the hum of technology coming from one of them. 

“If I can get in there, I bet I can get the network up and running again,” Finn whispered.

“We need a distraction.”

“Poe, no-”

“Yes. I can buy you time, okay?”

“Poe-”

“Finn, we need to expose what they’re doing. We need to protect the world, and the animals. I’m going to have Blue stay with you.”

“What? Poe!”

“She’ll protect you. And the command to release her, to let her do her thing, if you need her to - it’s three clicks.” He clicked a command and Blue’s head came up, watching Poe give the clicker to Finn. She cocked her head unnervingly at Finn for a long second that had Finn holding his breath, before coming to stand by him and watch the clearing intently. 

“Poe.” Finn reached for his hand and Poe let out a soft chuckle, taking it to pull Finn closer and brush his lips across Finn’s. He eased back and Finn growled, taking a fistful of Poe’s shirt and crushing his lips in a fierce kiss. “Don’t fucking die, okay?”

Poe’s lips went wide in a grin. “Okay.” He turned and started to walk away from Finn, but then they were both distracted by gunfire in the camp. In the clear morning air, they saw Rey bash her rifle across someone’s face. “Looks like Rey rescued herself,” Poe said, still grinning.  


“Yeah but it looks like she could use some help finishing the job,” Finn pointed out. “Go!” He and Blue watched Poe race through the undergrowth, then join the fight at the south side of the camp that was pulling everyone in. “Okay Blue, now it’s our turn,” Finn whispered, and the raptor growled beside him, but followed him as he ran as fast as his limp would allow toward the tent with the electronic hum.

He ducked inside, brandishing his gun at the tech inside. “Get out,” he growled.

The tech put her hands in the air but didn’t move. Then, her eyes went wide and she screamed, scrambling out the seat and out the other side of the tent. Finn glanced behind him, grinning as he saw the outline of Blue against the tent. She peeked her head in, curious, and Finn could almost swear she had a grin on her face.

Finn sat at the nearest station and began typing immediately.

\--------------------------

“‘Bout time you showed up,” Rey muttered through her teeth as she kicked someone in the stomach and whirled.

“Should have known you’d never be the damsel in distress.”

“Oh  _ please, _ ” she replied, voice dripping sarcasm. “Poe, watch-”

Poe spun around, bringing the butt of his gun down on a guard’s forehead.

Rey grinned as she smashed her fist into a face. “You know, I’m trying to decide if I missed this whole ‘desperately-fighting-for-my-life’ thing.”

“Let me guess, the verdict is ‘no’.”

Rey heaved a breath as they took out their final opponents. “You know, I just think I like the animals better now.”

“Yeah, me too.” He shoulder checked her as they turned to go get Finn. 

“That was very entertaining.” Mr. Masrani’s voice echoed through the clearing, and Poe and Rey stopped in their tracks. The billionaire stood with a dozen heavily armed guards. “But I would lower your weapons now, if you want the traitor to live.” He indicated the grenades on the nearest guard’s belt, and nodded at the tent where Finn was hopefully getting out the word to bring down this bastard. Poe dropped his weapon to the dirt and raised his hands, and he saw Rey to the same to his right. 

“Step forward, away from the weapons.”

“Stop!” All heads turned to Finn as he came out of the tent, holding something in his hand. Blue paced beside him.

“Finn, we were just discussing you.”

“Everything about your operation is on this flash drive. Everything I know, my only copy. And it’s all yours, if we all go free.”

“No, Finn,” Poe cried out, and Finn pinned him with one of his haughty gazes.  _ Trust me. _

Mr. Masrani tsked. “Poe, Poe, Poe. Leave this to the businessmen, hmm? Negotiations don’t exactly fall in your purview.”

Finn smirked a little at that. “Exactly. Let’s review, shall we? For the low, low price of my life, plus the lives of Rey and Poe - and I mean a lifetime, no dying in mysterious car accidents or accidental shootings - you get a guarantee that you can continue your operations without worrying about exposure, and- and you get Blue, here,” Finn said as he nodded to his side.

Poe’s blood boiled, and beside him, Rey cursed softly, but there was that look again, and so he remained silent.

“And what’s to stop me from taking what I want and killing you anyway?” 

“Because that wouldn’t be efficient. You need Poe to train the animals. And I can guarantee he won’t do it if Rey is dead. Or me,” he added as an afterthought.

Mr. Masrani pursed his lips. “You always were very intuitive, Finn. You could have done great things.”

“Do we have a deal?” Poe noticed that Finn had worked his hand into his pocket without anyone noticing, as they were all distracted by the shiny flash drive he was holding up.

Masrani considered it for a moment. “Yes,” he finally said. When Finn held out the drive in front of him, Masrani nodded at the guard near him to retrieve it. 

The guard walked toward him, and Poe held his breath. In a flurry of movement, Finn attached the drive to Blue’s tracking collar. “Come and get it,” he growled, and pulled the clicker from his other pocket, clicking it three times to release Blue. 

At the same time, Poe and Rey retrieved their weapons, and chaos erupted around them. 

Using Blue as a distraction was great, but Poe didn’t necessarily want all of these people torn apart, so he yelled to Finn and raised his hand up. Finn nodded once, tossing the training clicker at him even as he fired tranq darts into the suddenly chaotic crowd of guards.

By the time Poe managed to click out the command to stop, Blue was standing over a prone Masrani, one clawed foot resting lightly on his chest and her head tilting, as if she was judging Masrani’s fitness for life. The guards were either down (whether from human or raptor), or holding their weapons in the air as Rey, Finn and Poe advanced on them. They forced the guards to the ground, kicking away weapons, eliminating the immediate threat.

“Flash drive was bullshit, right Finn?” Rey said conversationally.

“Oh yeah. Total bullshit. The story of what’s beem going on here at Jurassic World has been downloaded and copied a hundred thousand times over by now.” Finn grinned wickedly, and Poe decided he liked that look on him. 

Poe walked to stand behind Finn. “So that flash drive has…?”

“Fuck if I know. I grabbed it off the desk when I heard these guys pull up.” He laughed when Poe kissed him on the neck, then swatted him away.

“I can’t help it, you’re sexy when you’re clever.”

Rey cleared her throat. “As excited as I am about this, should we maybe think about getting some cover, just in case Richy Rich here has backup?”

“Good idea,” Poe said jovially, slipping an arm around Finn’s waist because he could and because Finn looked like he was fading fast. He helped Finn to a bunk, then he and Rey took turns securing everyone and keeping watch.


	5. Chapter 5

“Want to play doctor?”

Finn bit down on his lip to stop his grin, then opened his eyes to see Poe framed in the entrance to the canvas tent, sunlight making a halo out of his wild curls. He shook the medical supplies he had in his hand, and Finn worked himself into a seated position.

Poe was careful, gentle in unwrapping the gauze, gentler yet when he examined Finn’s four wounds. “It’s not looking infected, which is a minor miracle in itself, but I wish I could get you to a real doctor. How does it feel?”

“Well, I’d rather not have to walk halfway across the island again. But it’s okay. I’ll survive.” He hissed as Poe cleaned the wounds again, then offered a small smile when Poe paused.

Poe ducked his head again, continuing to work on Finn’s calf. “You didn’t have to do this for me. Or for Blue. You could have just told Masrani you were okay with the deals. It’s not like you were my biggest fan.” 

Finn reached down to take hold of Poe’s chin and look him in the eyes. “I’m pretty sure Masrani could have replaced me easily. I don’t think you can. Once I realized that, the choice was easy.”

Poe scooted further up the bed. “Damn right you’re irreplaceable.” He cupped Finn’s cheek before dipping his head to capture Finn’s mouth. 

Finn sighed when Poe pulled back. “I think so, too,” he said, knowing his voice sounded dreamy. Then he shook his head. “I mean, you are. Irreplaceable. You’re irreplaceable to me. Jesus.” His voice petered out in embarrassment as Poe laughed. 

“Fuck, you’re adorable.” Poe took his mouth again, and Finn let himself be eased back down on the bunk, hands tangling in Poe’s soft curls as he opened up to Poe’s explorations. He got lost in the feel of Poe’s lips, the rough slide of them, the sweep of his tongue. Poe’s hand was on his chest, sweeping over his muscles, playing lightly at his stomach.

They broke apart suddenly when they heard the sound of helicopter blades. More than one helicopter, by the sound of it. Poe grabbed his gun and peeked out the flap of the tent. “Holy shit.”

“What, who is it? Poe, talk to me,” Finn tried to stand, but his leg had stiffened and he landed back on the bunk with a thud.

“Finn.” When Poe turned back around, his eyes were filled with excitement. “It’s the fucking UN.”


	6. Chapter 6

Epilogue

The thing about corporations, Finn figured, was that they took knocks better than any human. The UN slapped InGen’s hand, placed some cursory sanctions on the countries involved, and tried Masrani for war crimes. InGen used Masrani as their scapegoat, placed a new figurehead there instead, and reopened Jurassic World to tourists. Within a week, they were back to running at full capacity. And Finn and Poe? Well, InGen didn’t want to end the raptor training program, but the UN wanted a watchdog. Someone to expose any more of InGen’s secrets that might make the UN...itchy. As the new head director of Jurassic World, Finn was happy to volunteer.

The first thing on Finn’s agenda? Blue’s raptor run.

Finn found Poe at the edge of the fence, watching Blue race through her new area to find her limits. He took Poe’s hand in his, and Poe looked at him gratefully. “It’s perfect, Finn. I mean, I know I approved the designs and oversaw the construction, but seeing her in here. It’s perfect.”

Finn leaned his head on Poe’s shoulder as they both watched her zoom around on the tracking monitor. “She deserves it.”

“You know what we deserve?” Poe wrapped his arm around Finn’s waist and steered him away from the run slowly. Finn was still limping, and always would, but his physical therapist had hopes that they could reduce it over time. 

“What’s that?”

“Some lagoon time. The doc did say naked swimming was good for your leg.”

Finn laughed and shoulder checked him. “I don’t remember the naked part.”

“Really? Must have been typing on your phone. Trust me.” Poe flashed him a smile, and Finn laughed again, pulling Poe’s body up against his and smirking when Poe’s eyes went wide. Good. He liked to keep him on his toes.

“See, what I was thinking was an activity where we could be someplace more comfortable. Like the bed.”

Poe’s hand reached down and sunk into his ass, and Finn gasped a little before biting his lip. “Mmm, that’s why they pay you the big bucks, with all these brilliant ideas.” 

Finn yelped when Poe boosted him up, hiking Finn’s legs around his waist and walking him to their jeep. When he was set down, gently, in the passenger seat, he grabbed a fistful of Poe’s hair and crushed their mouths together. 

“Drive fast,” he advised, reaching out to slap Poe’s ass as he walked around the car.

Poe just threw him a grin, and Finn’s laugh echoed through the clearing as the Jeep tore out.

**Author's Note:**

> Oh man, what a wild ride. This was originally just going to be a ficlet, but then Meekobits inspired me. 
> 
> Comments and kudos are always, always, always appreciated. For reals. Especially when I do something out of left field like this. If this is the kind of content you like, let me know, here or on tumblr @ animalasaysrauer


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